'It was robustly reliable, steered and handled to perfection, was, if anything, over-braked, and would exceed 100mph. At a stroke it made all other 125cc machinery in Britain obsolete. The CR93 was not cheap but it was, quite simply, built to exactly the same high standard as Honda's own racing machinery.' - Brian Woolley, Classic Racer magazine.

Just one year after its breakthrough first success at World Championship level in 1961, Honda made its state-of-the-art Grand Prix technology available to privateers in the form of the 50cc CR110 and 125cc CR93 over-the-counter racers. Like their works equivalents, the 50cc single and 125cc twin employed gear-driven double overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder, this combination of tiny cylinders and minuscule valves enabling them to rev safely well into five figures, the CR93's ceiling being a then stratospheric 13,000rpm with maximum power of 16.5bhp arriving at 11,500 revs. Both models employed a tubular-steel frame, devoid of lower rails, to which was attached a conventional set of cycle parts, and while the '50' boasted no fewer than eight gears in the 'box, the more tractable '125' made do with six. The duo immediately achieved a dominance of their respective classes that would last for many years, and countless stars of the future, including Bill Ivy, Jim Curry, Rod Scivyer and sidecar champion Chris Vincent, gained their early experience aboard the diminutive CRs. Just 40-or-so CR93s were imported into the UK and today they are highly sought after by classic racers and collectors alike.

Unfortunately, nothing is known of the history of this 'barn find' CR93, which is offered for restoration and sold strictly as viewed. The machine comes complete with fairing and a spare exhaust system. No reserve.

Footnotes

The Kanda Collection

Tokyo-born Yoritatsu (Yori) Kanda, 74, is a highly respected member of motorcycling's international press corps. He originally moved to England in the mid-1970s, settling happily in Sussex from where he began reporting Grands Prix, motorcycle shows, machine and aftermarket press launches; building in the process an extensive knowledge of technical matters, brand histories, race and industry politics, production technologies and so on, subjects about which he has written frequently. As well as contributing to the major Japanese publications he has filed countless articles for important European magazines.

Tragically in 2007, while attending a bike launch in Italy, he suffered a serious accident. In addition to a fortnight's concussion, his injuries included five fractured vertebrae. Following 18 months in specialist care, Yori returned to his home in Eastbourne but sadly is now resident in a nursing home.

Among numerous books authored for the Japanese market is his History of Japanese Racing Motorcycles, which included the first ever photographs of 1960s-period racing machines, fully stripped, for enthusiasts to examine and enjoy. Undoubtedly his greatest journalistic coup was persuading Messrs Kawashima, Hasegawa, and Shimizu (senior directors respectively of Honda, Yamaha and Suzuki) to meet together in one room for an on-the-record discussion! Another typical Yori 'scoop' came in September 1967 when he managed a sneak shot of former MZ factory rider Ernst Degner - already notorious for joining Suzuki after defecting from East Germany while leading the World Championship on an MZ  who was secretly testing a 125 Kawasaki at the Fuji circuit. The picture would turn out to be a sensation, as Degner crashed heavily a few laps later, sustaining injuries that ended the German rider's career.

Like so many journalists, Yori is both collector and hoarder. Seemingly reluctant to dispose of any information issued by a manufacturer, he has amassed over the last 40 years an extraordinary quantity of factory Press Kits ex-BMW, Ducati, Harley-Davidson, Honda, etc plus Triumph from 1990 onwards. More importantly though, he has also accumulated one of the most comprehensive and discerning collections of motorcycle books to have been offered on the open market. Given his passion it is no surprise the Kanda Collection includes seven motorcycles - trials, scrambles, racing, classic and street - from five different nations no less. Understandably, Yori has had insufficient time to complete their refurbishment.

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